Channel Niners
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Television broadcasting |
| Founded | September 5, 1959 |
| Headquarters | Adelaide , Australia |
| Owner | Nine Network |
| Parent | Nine Network |
NWS is a television broadcaster located in Adelaide, Australia, and operates under the ownership of the Nine Network. The station's callsign, NWS, represents The NeWs South Australia.
Origins
| Shareholder | Ownership Percentage |
|---|---|
| Lamb Family | 35.02% |
| Wansey Family | 30.14% |
| Hadjoin Pty Ltd | 19.88% |
| Others | 14.96% |
NWS-9 commenced operations on 5 September 1959 as Adelaide’s inaugural television station. Initially, it was owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Limited through Southern Television Corporation, which also controlled the local newspaper The News. Among its early well-received productions were live variety programs such as Adelaide Tonight and special editions of Hey Hey It's Saturday, educational series like The Curiosity Show, country music-themed The Country and Western Hour, and children’s shows including Channel Niners, C'mon Kids, Here's Humphrey, and Pick Your Face. The station aired South Australian National Football League games from 1989 until 1992 and notably delivered the league’s first colour broadcast of the Grand Final in 1973.
In early 1980, ownership of NWS changed hands when NBN Limited purchased the station for A$19 million. The following year, Hadjoin Pty Ltd—affiliated with Kevin Parry’s Esplanade Limited—acquired a 19.88% interest in NBN for $6.7 million. Parry attempted to buy out the Wansey family’s shares but was legally restrained by the Supreme Court of New South Wales. Subsequently, Parry initiated a takeover bid for NBN, which included NWS. Ultimately, an agreement was reached wherein NBN transferred control of NWS to the Lamb family in exchange for their shares in NBN, thereby ending NBN Limited’s ownership of the Adelaide station.
Recent history
In 1999, the Lamb family divested NWS to Southern Cross Broadcasting for $96 million, a transaction that led to nearly half of the workforce being made redundant.
Southern Cross Broadcasting later sold NWS-9 to WIN Corporation on 30 May 2007 for $105 million, with WIN assuming operational control from 1 July 2007.
On 3 June 2013, Nine Entertainment revealed it had acquired Nine Adelaide (NWS) from WIN immediately as part of securing rights to broadcast international cricket. The network officially took over on 1 July 2013, integrating Nine Adelaide as a wholly owned metropolitan outlet alongside Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne. This acquisition left only Perth outside Nine’s metropolitan ownership until it was purchased several months later.
Towards the end of 2014, Managing Director Sean O'Brien disclosed plans to move the station from its longstanding Tynte Street facilities to new premises located within the CBD within a two-year timeframe.
The final transmission from Tynte Street occurred on 18 September 2015, with broadcasts commencing from the new street-level studios on Pirie Street the following day.
Current in-house productions
- Nine News (Adelaide edition)
- Hello SA (2022–present)
- Building Ideas (Adelaide edition)
Previous in-house productions
- Adelaide Tonight
- The Curiosity Show
- C'mon Kids
- The Country and Western Hour
- Channel Niners
- Here's Humphrey
- Pick Your Face
- Postcards
- Out of the Blue
- Garden Gurus SA
- Building Ideas
- Feeling Good
- Out of the Ordinary
News
The broadcast of Nine News Adelaide originates from the NWS Adelaide studios. Weeknight news is presented by Kate Collins and Brenton Ragless, while Will McDonald anchors on weekends. Sports coverage during weekdays is delivered by Tom Rehn, with Corey Norris handling weekend sports, and weather forecasts are provided by Jessica Braithwaite and Chelsea Carey.
News history
John Doherty holds the distinction of being the station's first-ever news anchor.
Between 1988 and 2007, Rob Kelvin and Kevin Crease formed one of Australia's longest-standing news presenting teams on weeknights.
In the 1990s, Deanna Williams acted as the principal fill-in anchor and reported on state politics. After her departure in 2002, weekend bulletins were occasionally covered by Kelvin or Crease; notably, in 2005 when all main presenters were unavailable, weekend sports presenter Mark Bickley stepped in to deliver the news.
Throughout this era, weekend bulletins consistently achieved higher ratings than their competitors on Seven News Adelaide, although weeknight broadcasts remained second to Seven.
In late 2008, NWS-9 introduced a localized edition of A Current Affair, hosted by Kate Collins; however, this program was discontinued after one year.
Subsequently, Kelly Nestor's contract as Kelvin's co-anchor on weeknights was not renewed at the end of 2009, leading to her exit in December of that year.
February 2010 saw senior reporter Michael Smyth joining Rob Kelvin at the news desk.
Rob Kelvin retired at the close of 2010 after a 32-year tenure but continued to contribute occasional special reports. Kate Collins then took over alongside Smyth as co-anchor.
In October 2011, contracts for Michael Smyth and Georgina McGuinness were not extended. From late 2011 until December 2013, Kate Collins anchored solo on weeknights, with Will McDonald presenting weekend bulletins.
Despite the national success of Nine News, the Adelaide edition has consistently lagged behind Seven News Adelaide in ratings by approximately 100,000 viewers since its last local ratings victory in 2007. This ongoing challenge has resulted in numerous changes to on-air roles at NWS.
Presenters and reporters
News presenters
- Kate Collins (Weeknights, 2011–present)
- Brenton Ragless (Weeknights, 2014–present)
- Will McDonald (Weekends, 2011–present)
Sports presenters
- Warren Tredrea (Weeknights, 2013–2021)
- Tom Rehn (Weekends, 2015–2022; Weekdays, 2022–present)
- Corey Norris (Weekends, 2022–present)
Weather presenters
- Jessica Braithwaite (Weeknights, 2016–present)
- Chelsea Carey (Weekends, 2019–present)
News reporters
- Ben Avery
- Alice Monfries
- Ollie Haig
- Kelly Hughes
- Inga Neilsen
- Beth Excell
- Shannen McDonald
- Michaela Komarek
- Dylan Smith
- Will Di Fulvio
- April Cretan
- Samantha Hogan
- Gus Macdonald
- Josephine Shannon
Sport reporters
- Tom Rehn
- Corey Norris
- Jack Berketa
- Will Crouch
- Josh Money
- Vicki Schwarz
- Emma Henderson
Distinguished Former Presenters
- Caroline Ainslie – Served as Weeknight Presenter from 1977 to 1987 before retiring
- Elise Baker – Delivered the breaking report on Phil Walsh's passing during Today in July 2015; currently a reporter for Seven News Adelaide
- Sue Baron – Meteorologist during the 1970s; subsequently worked as News Presenter at ADS-7/ADS-10; now retired
- Mark Bickley – Weekend Sports Presenter between 2004 and 2009; presently co-hosts an afternoon sports program on talk-back radio FiveAA
- James Brayshaw – Sports Reporter in 2002; currently a commentator with Seven Network
- Jarrad Brevi – Currently affiliated with Nine News Sydney
- Nona Burden – Presenter and Reporter active during the 1970s and 1980s
- Grant Cameron – Weekend Weather Presenter from the late 1970s through the 1980s; now part of SAS
- Roger Cardwell – Weeknight Presenter from 1974 until 1983; retired
- Jeremy Cordeaux – Hosted Cordeaux's Adelaide throughout the 1980s
- Kevin Crease – Weeknight Presenter during the 1960s to 1974 and again from 1987 to 2007 (Deceased)
- Steve Cropper – Presenter and Reporter in the 1980s
- K. G. Cunningham – Weekend Sports Presenter spanning 1975 to 2003; currently with SAS
- Joel Dry – Reporter from 2009 to 2011; presently with Seven News Brisbane
- Tony Curtis – Worked as Presenter and Reporter during the 1970s and 1980s
- Troy Gray – Weekend Sports Presenter between 2008 and 2012
- John Doherty – Presenter in the late 1950s through the 1960s; retired
- Sue Ellbourne – Weather Presenter in the 1970s
- Georgina McGuinness – Weekend Presenter from 1987 until 2011
- Michael Smyth – Weeknight Presenter between 2008 and 2011
- Sue Garrard – Active as Presenter and Reporter in the 1980s
- Clive Hale – Presenter during the 1970s; later became a national anchor for ABC (deceased)
- Paris Martin – Reporter; currently with 10 News First Queensland
- Keith Martyn – Weather Presenter from 1996 to 2007; retired but occasionally appears for special segments
- Xavier Minniecon – Weekend Weather Presenter between 1997 and 2011
- Ray McGhee – Senior Reporter spanning from 1979 to 2007; now owns a mortgage brokerage and was an independent candidate in the 2010 election
Titles of News Bulletins
- NWS-9 News, Sport and Weather (1959–1965)
- Channel 9 News (1960s–early 1970s)
- National Nine News (early 1970s, 1976–1980, and again from 1987 to 2008)
- Nine Eyewitness News (1974–1976)
- Nine Action News (1981–1986)
- Nine News (2008–present)